New Western Springs Rules Aimed To Prevent Gun Shops

There are nearly 150 blocks in Western Springs, but as of Monday, only one is a legal site for a gun shop.

And that block, near the Tri-State Tollway and Hillgrove Avenue on the village's western edge, is occupied.

In other words: Gun shops won't be allowed in Western Springs.

That's the message the Village Board sent Monday when it voted unanimously to limit gun shops to areas zoned for industrial use. The board also voted to require a special-use permit for siting a gun shop.

In order to obtain a permit, a developer must first submit to a hearing. If neighbors of the proposed site oppose the land use, the board can use those opinions to justify voting against it.

"It was an attempt, as a non-home-rule community that cannot ban gun shops, to significantly control them," said Village President David E. Lawrence. "The intent was not to have them or encourage them."

Under the Illinois Constitution, only municipalities with 25,000 or more residents are automatically granted home-rule powers, which allow them to enact legislation not specifically sanctioned by the state. Residents also can grant their leaders home-rule powers through a referendum.

Because Western Springs' population is under 12,000 and voters have never weighed in on the issue, the village does not have home-rule powers. So when the town was urged to ban gun shops, it did "the next best thing," as Village Administrator Martin J. Bourke put it.

Trustee Val Price said the village began researching possible limitations on gun shops in July, when Cook County Circuit Court Clerk Aurelia Pucinski's office requested that the village outlaw gun sales.

Other communities, such as Schaumburg and Tinley Park, have regulated gun sales by requiring special-use permits. Others, such as Oak Park, Morton Grove, Wilmette and Chicago, have banned handgun possession.

In Western Springs, there are no gun shops, although a hardware store sells shotgun shells for hunters. That store will be allowed to continue selling the shells under the new measure.